Apple’s efforts to protect a user’s data are a major selling point for customers. If your MacBook is stolen, it is extremely difficult for the thief to bypass the laptop’s security measures and gain access to the data as long as you have taken advantage of the tools at your disposal to lock down your machine. However, these same security measures can render a Mac useless in a legitimate second-hand market sale.
A Vice report highlights the frustrations of independent computer repair and refurbishment specialist John Bumstead, who tweeted about the “millions” of MacBooks that have been “sentenced…to death” to because of Apple’s activation lock. Activation Lock associates a device with an Apple ID, and the Apple ID username and password must be entered to access the Mac, even if it has been erased. It is automatically enabled when Find My Mac is enabled in Apple ID settings on your Mac.
Bumstead told Vice that Apple’s security is “tremendous” and has become nearly impossible to jailbreak or circumvent on Apple’s M-series Macs. The T2 security chip introduced by Apple on Intel Macs in 2018 is now built into the M1 and M2 systems on one chip and if not properly disabled will cause Macs less than two years old to be scrapped and disassembled. years.
Activation Lock has long been a problem for third-party resellers, as well as anyone involved in a legitimate transaction – igamesnews’s Mac 911 Help Columnist often receives emails requesting Activation Lock. As Bumstead points out, if Find My Mac hasn’t been disabled, the devices can’t be used even if they’re in good working order. Users can disable Find My Mac in their Mac’s Apple ID settings, but this also disables the ability to locate it. Activation Lock cannot be enabled or disabled separately.
Bumstead wants Apple to be more active in helping people who are legitimately trying to gain access to a device. He suggests that a user could make an access request to a machine, then Apple could “explore its records” and “question the original owner”, and if everything checks out “and the original owner doesn’t protest not within 30 days”, the restrictions can be lifted so that the device can be reused.
To turn off Activation Lock on your Mac, you need to turn off Find My Mac.
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Apple has a way online to request that Activation Lock be turned off, but that involves performing a serial number check of the device against the registered owner, which means the second owner must be able to work with it. the original owner to get the application completed. In some cases, this is difficult or impossible to do.
It is important that if a device is sold second-hand, the Apple ID must be disassociated from it. If you sell a device, you can’t just wipe the drive and reinstall the operating system, you also need to disable Find My Mac and Activation Lock. If you’re buying a used device, confirm with the seller that Activation Lock has been turned off and the product has been unlinked from the owner’s Apple ID. Also confirm that you can contact the seller for their Apple ID information if Activation Lock is on and that you can return a device that you cannot access.
Apple encourages owners of older devices to participate in the company’s trade-in program. Eligible devices earn credit for a purchase, while ineligible devices are recycled for free. Apple can presumably unlock Macs that are inaccessible due to Activation Lock.
